RealNetworks created a petition as part of its war against Apple. Real cracked Apple's FairPlay code in July. Now songs bought from the RealPlayer Music Store can be played on the iPod. Apple responded stating that it is investigating the implications of Reals software strategy under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) and other laws.
Reals next move was to drop the price of their songs down to 49-cents for a limited time, far below the price of Apple and claiming this to be the biggest online music sale in history. Of course this is incorrect. Music Rebellion offered their music for several days at the launch of their online site for the price of 5-cents per song.
The final step from Real, which has proven to be another mistake on their part, a petition for music fans to sign and post comments about Reals open stance. The majority of responses on Reals "Freedom of Music Choice" site came from pro Apple users signed with obscenities and anti-Real postings.
Real has now removed the option of adding comments to signatures. They even went as far as hiding all previous comments. The petition has reached over 1000 signatures.
Of course, in retaliation, Apple fans have created their own petition against Reals petition. Here the comments are viewable for all to see. This petition has already received over 2500 signatures.